


The Mad Man

by starshipslytherin



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Inferi, Mystery, revival
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-04-12
Updated: 2017-04-12
Packaged: 2018-10-18 01:12:57
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,398
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10606224
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/starshipslytherin/pseuds/starshipslytherin
Summary: Is it really a good thing to revive dead people? Does it result in gratidute and second chances at life, or just chaos?An unknown wizard, "The Mad Man", has taken it upon himself to test this out, and after his first two strikes barely received any attention, he goes big.Over seven hundred inferi, found in a certain lake, were revived by him in just one night. Among them is, you might guess it, one Regulus Black, who is not at all thankful for a second life without his brother, and without anything to do.He gets to live with his cousin Narcissa's middle aged son and to be bored all day, at least until two younger Slytherins, Scorpius and Albus, decided to find The Mad Man themselves, and Regulus comes with them.





	

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lucius Malfoy wishes the outrageously bad style of writing of a certain Daily Prophet article was the only thing to upset him.

Narcissa exhales sharply through her nostrils and almost forcefully lets the newspaper slide over the breakfast table toward Lucius, who has been concentrating on the perfect mixture of tea leaves, and he flinches as it hits his elbow. Blinking and wide eyed, he gives his wife a questioning look. The reason for him spilling too much sage into his precious morning tea better be something relevant, after all.  
With an arched brow, Narcissa watches as he reads out the headline of the day.  
"'The Mad Man Strikes Again?' And they're calling this 'quality news'. You are right, Narcissa; the Daily Prophet is not what it used to be any more." He sighs nostalgically, and Narcissa rolls her eyes dramatically.  
"I'm not about the phrasing of the headline, but what the respective article says. Go on, read it out aloud."  
Lucius has to clear his throat and continues.  
"'Incredible!, This time he's going too far!, Execute him! Whoever just learnt about the most recent strike of Aurelius Darke, better known as The Mad Man, will react in a way that has a similar ring to it; Ministry employees have been working all night, interrogating, sorting files, consuming appropriately humongous amounts of coffee. _I can't, I'm exhausted, bu' we're in need of every witch an' wizard we can get, I'm tellin' ya_ , says Phidelia Featherpin, an employee of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. _Even though our actual jobs don' have anythin' to do with this_ , adds her brother Anthony.' This article is extraordinarily poorly written; after reading the first paragraph, I, as a reader, have no idea what it is really about", Lucius criticises.  
"Well, it's about The Mad Man's newest strike", says Narcissa pointedly and purses her lips. "But don't let it irritate you, go on."  
"I would prefer for you to simply tell me what you would like me to know", Lucius shakes his head. "This should be classified as torture."  
"It would be torture if I forced you to read the entire newspaper for no apparent reason", Narcissa snaps. "Go on now, don't get your hopes up too high, I am not telling you anything."  
Lucius resigns with a deep inhale. "Fine. 'After resurrecting five South American muggles who had died in a fatal car crash minutes before (cars are the noisy, colorful means of transportation that muggles are likely to use), and thereafter, four days later, two stillborn infants, Darke's miracles, as he calls them, entered a whole new dimension on Tuesday this week.' It is Wednesday. They should have written 'yesterday' instead. _'Well, that escalated quickly_ , Draco Malfoy, spokeswizard of the Department of Mysteries and member of the Wizengamot, commented on the incident upon learning the details of it. _Of course they're mysterious_ , he adds answering the question whether he found the recent events to be mysterious.' Is that the reason you made me read it? Because they are taking advantage of my son in order to -"  
Narcissa cuts him off. "Well, not really, even though they consulted him as an - expert - later in the article; no, I'm interested in what it is about. Now, do read the rest of it."  
"'Yesterday morning -' oh, see, they used the word yesterday! '-Darke took it upon himself to prove that inferi are in fact undead creatures with their minds still somewhat attached to them. Instead of using more conventional means of science, he decided to magically revive no less than seven hundred and twenty-eight inferi that he had allegedly found in a British lake. He successfully resurrected seven hundred and twenty-seven of them; he said the one he was unable to save had been too old and weak anyway.' Seven hundred! Over seven hundred, Narcissa. What damned soul might possibly believe this! 'A hundred and eighty of them have already been interrogated by ministry officials. _Thay seem pre'y normal,_ says Odelia White, who helped organise the interrogations. _And our experts say their vaytal organs and mentaboyisms are workin' right. Jus' normal people, I mean some of them are behayvin' funny, bu' moyst o' thoyse are muggles. Normal for them to be odd_.' At least our offspring can speak correctly. These people's pronunciation is a shame. 'The group of experts is lead and advised by Draco Malfoy and mostly consists of employees of the Department of Mysteries. _It is in fact unusual for seven hundred and twenty seven inferi to be resurrected at once, by one person,_ says Mr. Malfoy. _Actually, it is unusual for inferi to be resurrected at all. Until this day, we believed that wasn't possible_ , he adds.' Perhaps because it is not possible!" Lucius slams the paper onto the tabletop. "This nonsense!"  
"Well, I'd simply ask Draco about it", Narcissa suggests with a sarcastic undertone. "After all, he's the leading expert."  
Lucius huffs and, breathing shakily, continues, hopeless madness shimmering deep within his eyes.  
"'The former inferi are still being registered, and it is to be researched whether their bodies have indeed been fully repaired to continue to function normally, or are just being kept functional by possibly dangerous charms, or even something like necromancy or voodoo. For this purpose, they will be required to undergo several medical tests in the following weeks, or even months. Being aware of this possibility must be hard. _Evidently, I'm hoping not to suddenly fall apart, you know, because that would be less than pleasant for everyone present, including myself_ , one of the victims, seventeen-and-a-half-year-old Regulus Black, exclusively told the Daily Prophet.'"  
With narrowed eyebrows, Lucius watches his wife, barely noticeably shaking his head. "That's not possible", he whispers.  
"It says it there", Narcissa whispers back, her voice sounding husky. She swallows thickly and bites the inside of her lower lip. "It says it right there in the article."  
Lucius rereads the sentence, over and over, five times, ten times. He comes to the very same conclusion every time: He has only known one seventeen-year-old Regulus Black in his life, and this seventeen-year-old Regulus Black vanished at seventeen. Seventeen and a half, to be as precise as the source. And while the articles of the Daily Prophet tend to be badly written, they usually don't lie.  
His hands shaking, he brings the paper back up to his eyes. "' _Sixty per cent of the victims are muggles. It will be easy for them to be reintegrated into their society, owing to memory charms and the possibility to use those on them as well as on possible future employers, neighbours or friends, if necessary,_ Mr. Malfoy explains. The Department of Magical Law Enforcement and the Department of Communication are currently preparing to work on this, according to Mr. Malfoy. _That's gonna be a ton o' work_ , Phidelia Featherpin told us with a sigh, and several colleagues around her nodded in confirmation.  
Most of the victims' former employers have agreed to re-employ their former employees in the near future. Seventeen per cent of the victims, however, are underage and/or have never had a proper job. Ninety three per cent of this group still have relatives who may be contacted for help, which the Ministry is going to do within a week. The remaining seven per cent will find support at the ministry or from volunteers, which are currently being sought for. _As far as we can tell, those young people aren't dangerous, they just need help,_ Mr. Malfoy pledges. _If you have a spare bedroom at home, please think about them._  
Any hint on the current whereabouts of Aurelius Darke is to be rewarded with up to a hundred galleons, depending on its value for the ministry.  
_This man is most likely dangerous_ , Mr. Malfoy emphasises. _We cannot know what else he might do, he has surprised us more than once, and we can't know what his next strike might be. It would only be fair for him to be interrogated, and for the victims as well; they have questions only he could answer at the moment, and of course they're desperate._  
The numbers of suicides and suicide attempts sadly prove him right; within two hours, twelve of the victims tried to take their own lives, three of whom succeeded.'"  
Lucius lets the Prophet sink down, and with his lips pressed together, he props his head up on his arm and Narcissa watches him saying nothing for a few minutes. His tea is standing next to him, completely forgotten.


End file.
